Cory Gardner (R-CO) has sent a letter to Don Shawcroft, President of the Colorado Farm Bureau, asking for input from him and farmers and ranchers across the state on what legislative priorities are important to Colorado’s agriculture communities.

Gardner is a passionate advocate for farmers, ranchers and rural Coloradans and has spent his time in public office championing agriculture. Last year, Gardner was awarded the Colorado Farm Bureau’s Service to Agriculture Award. The Service to Agriculture Award is given to one individual within the Colorado Farm Bureau and one individual outside of the organization annually to recognize their service to the industry and is the organization’s highest honor. In August, Gardner concluded his Second Annual Colorado Farm Tour – meeting with local farm bureaus, traveling over 1,600 miles, making more than 30 stops, and visiting 27 counties on the Western Slope and Eastern Plains. 

The letter reads in full:

Dear Don:

I write to thank you for the service you provide to Colorado agriculture and the 36,000 farms and ranches across the state that depend on the services provided by organizations like the Colorado Farm Bureau.

As we move forward into a new Congress and new Administration, I want to hear from Colorado Farm Bureau and our state’s farmers and ranchers on how we can work together to support growth in Colorado’s agriculture industry. With various commodity prices dropping close to 20 percent between 2013 and 2015, I would like to know what legislative priorities you believe will assist in helping to turn around this trend.

Whether it is regulations or legislation, it is important for the Administration and Congress to understand the impact of their policies, and agriculture is no exception. I look forward to hearing from you and farmers and ranchers throughout the state on how we can work together to ensure Colorado agriculture continues to be effectively represented in Washington.